Photography

This Is Going To Suck

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I brought the old Polaroid One Step camera out of the storage box and decided to clean it up and put it to use now that Polaroid/Impossible Project/Polaroid Originals is creating a consistent, reliable supply of compatible 600 film.

Bringing an old toy out to play again is very exciting

I counted on the first few sheets or hell, even the whole box to learn and adjust to and I wasn’t wrong. Polaroid films prefer excellent lighting and shooting indoors without it is…challenging.

So the best way is to make these mistakes earlier so I can move on and produce the thoughtful, deliberate shots I want to.

I also charged up the Fujifilm Instax Mini 90, loaded it with some newly purchased film and it’s good to go as well.

I have this thing for monochrome, okay?

Next up is the Canon 35mm Sureshot point and shoot camera. I loaded up some some Fuji ASA 200 film and took a few shots yesterday to test it out.

I want to get back into the sure joy of analog photography and to have these physical reminders of my learning and developing. It’ll suck at first and that is okay by me.

Flickr Extinguished

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I am on a roll when it comes to de-bullshitting my life lately. I have been a Flickr photo account user since 2005 and have been through the ups, downs, acquisitions and no more. I simply do not see the value in another photo host with little to no social engagement with other photographers.

Besides, I’d rather grow my platforms than sharecrop someone else’s land and make them money.

Priority Shift

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It is fast approaching that time of year again. November is designated as National Novel Writing Month with their stated goal being 50,000 words a month into a novel. I love the concept but it isn’t practical for me so of course I’ll be hacking this.

Now that I am pivoting focus from photography to writing these next few months, it’ll probably go extreme. The intent is to crank out a couple of short stories, while finish plotting out the bigger ones. There may even be more frequent content here and in my personal journal as well.

I thought about the importance of my commitment to post here daily but nope, enjoying the process is more important than a stringent schedule. 

But then too I get frustrated with being a single-focused individual. I also want to grab the camera or write code but what has priority for me? What has more value?

Once I realize that one value is more important to me than another, I have to ask if I am living accordingly.  

What’s more important to me? Learning or creating? Expand or focus?

Once I work that out I may yet go extreme with it. “All in” as they say and optimize my life around it and let go of almost everything else. And then change it up after that.

Hibernation

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2019 was a great year for my portrait photography. There are so many creative, beautiful people out there and it was great to work with them but I need a break.

I’m hanging up the camera for portrait photography to focus on personal photography and reorganizing organizing my archives and portfolio.

I’m really looking forward to focus on writing. The days will be getting shorter and colder but I’ll be inside cranking out those words.

Khmer Empire Antiquities Part II

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In May 2019 I had the opportunity to explore the Art Institute of Chicago and Field Museum to research and analyze the ancient Khmer empire artifacts from Cambodia as research for an upcoming book. It was my delight to explore similar artifacts from this Labor Day in Kansas City at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.

There are a few similarities but also unique findings as well. As in Chicago it was in Kansas City that the description of these artifacts are incorrect. Minor points to help the general public understand but my way of thinking says that breeds ignorance. Let’s accept them for what they are instead of pandering, shall we?

As always though, I am grateful for the chance to explore more about this culture that has intrigued me since 1993 when I first discovered a book tucked away in the archives of a university library.

A partial bas-relief describing the Churning of the Ocean of Milk.
Sugriva the monkey king (end) leads smaller gods in this work.
Seated Buddha meditating for seven weeks. The serpent king lifts him up to prevent him drowning during a flooding storm. The artifact hosted in Chicago is more complete with the serpent’s head raised above and covering Buddha from the rains.
A pillar fragment with a heavenly maiden or devata in sandstone.
The crown on her head resembles the towers of the Angor Wat temple.
Except for the docents, we had the Nelson Atkins museum to ourselves.

Flexibility and Patience

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Aspen McDonald doing her thing

At some point in every portrait photographer’s career there will be a time when things just don’t work out according to the plan. Two characteristics will be very beneficial in getting around these situations; patience and flexibility. You also need to use what resources you have so the session won’t go to waste.

When my original plan to capture a model on roller skates through the park seemed like a good idea at the time, circumstances got in the way.

The golden hour should have been ideal but it was over an hour away. The lighting was complicated and scattered. The backdrop was beautiful in itself but was too distracting with the various trees, hills, rocks etc. Also, the surfaces to skate on were bumpy at best. Lastly, the model and her wardrobe was gorgeous but the backdrop did not compliment it at all.

Two lessons learned here

  1. Have an alternate nearby location.
  2. Make the most of what you got.

Even if I am working on a photo session and it all goes wrong, it is still worth making the most of the scene. You can walk away with something for your efforts and the model’s time. There were a few portraits to be proud of and to be honest, they actually came from the model’s suggestions on which area and poses we used. Again, remaining flexible and adapting helped salvage this photo session.

Art 1

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Here are a few masterpieces of art I enjoyed while visiting the Art Institute of Chicago recently. As evidenced in my photo portraiture, I have a love for faces. We find portraits fascinating because we are fascinated by people like ourselves. We’re also fascinated by people unlike ourselves. It is who we are and that is what makes us delightfully human. Similar but different. Fascinating.

Khmer Empire Antiquities

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Because I am still researching my novel based on the Khmer empire in Cambodia, I had hoped to discover some relics or art from this period and the Art Institute of Chicago did not disappoint.

What was disappointing were the descriptions of the artifacts. Which temple site was this taken from? Did the institute know?

One more disappointing concern? The description placards all say “Angkor period”. To be intellectually honest, let’s call it what it is. These were all from the Khmer Empire of Cambodia in the 11-12th centuries. The name Angkor is a reference to two of the biggest temples in this region, Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom. The terms “Khmer” or “empire” were not mentioned.

All these disappointments are cast aside for now because of the thrill of discovery. They were beautiful in a way that only those who study the culture can appreciate. Up until this moment I had only discovered a bas relief of an apsara dancer in the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.

For now, I will appreciate the experience but will write to the Art Institute for detailed information about this amazing collection.

Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Angkor period 12/13th century Cambodia

Buddha, Khmer Empire period, 11th century. Here the naga (snake) raises him from flooding waters during his meditation and protects him from the rains on his head.
A goddess Angkor period, 12th century Cambodia
A celestial dancer called an Apsara. Angkor period, 11th century Cambodia
Guardian Lion Angkor period, 12th century Cambodia